For nearly a decade, Sam Kerr has been one of the most entertaining and dangerous players in the W-League – in Australian football.

Since bursting onto the scene as a 15 year old – still holding the record for the youngest W-League goal scorer – the pacy winger’s game has matured and developed over time to make her a crucial part of whichever team she lines up for.

Time has also brought consistency with the 2016/17 W-League season arguably her best, resulting in the West Australian earning acclaim from the FFA, media and fans alike.

Darkest before dawn

Kerr’s performances are even more noteworthy when you consider it almost didn’t happen.

“If you had asked me a year ago if I thought I would be playing this year, I probably would have said no,” she stated.

While she had successfully returned from the previous setbacks, this time the long layoff mentally played havoc with the Glory captain.

“I’d played 6 months of football in two years,” she said. “It wasn’t worth it really for me to be that down off the field when I wasn’t really playing any football.”

“I remember last year Staj [Matildas coach Alen Stajcic] was giving me all the time I needed and being very understanding but my foot didn’t ever feel like it was getting better.”

Present at the ceremony to recognise her daughter, Kerr’s mother Roxanne played an important role in her daughter’s mental health – especially while she was thousands of miles from home in the United States.

“I had many conversations with my Mum about giving it up. Obviously it’s very tough because people want you to stay around.”

“It was a bit of a rocky patch and when you haven’t played in 9 months, you kind of doubt your ability and you doubt if it’s really worth it.”

“I really thought about it but I finally got the pain out of my foot and then things started to look up.”

Roxanne Kerr and Sam Kerr (Photo: Ann Odong)

Pain free, the 23 year old finally saw glimpses of light at the end of what had been a dark tunnel. That ray was the Rio 2016 Olympics but there was still one hurdle to overcome.

“Staj gave me an ultimatum,” she remembered. “I had to play 30 minutes to get picked in the Olympics.”

Kerr’s return to football occurred 222 days after first rupturing her foot ligament and it was a return that provided further clarity about her relationship with football.

“I went on [for Sky Blue FC] and with my first touch I scored a volley. It was meant to be I think,” she laughed.

THE W-League will take baby steps towards professionalism this season, with a new pay deal confirming that all players are recompensed for the first time. Australia’s national women’s soccer league has been criticised for using amateur players without paying them.

In an era of growing prominence and respect for women’s sport, it was an untenable position and will end in the 2016/17 competition, which starts in a fortnight.

Amateur players will now receive an allowance in line with male National Youth League (NYL) and state competitions – between $60 and $150 a week. Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) chief John Didulica said the move wasn’t going to turn national league players into professionals overnight, but it was something.

“Symbolically it’s important to recognise the sacrifices W-League players make, so the small step forward of having a safety net on par with NYL players is a move in the right direction,” he said.

“The big challenge for the sport is to build a cohesive and expanded professional pathway that will enable international success and the W-League to be the jewel in the crown of women’s sport.” League bosses and PFA will attempt to do just that in the coming weeks, when they begin broad-ranging talks on growing and strengthening the competition. Improved pay is seen as crucial to continuing the success of the national team, the Matildas, by ensuring a strong talent pool of players available for selection.

Cricket and netball have vastly improved wages to their female athletes in recent months, with the forthcoming AFL women’s league bringing more competition for elite talent.

W-League clubs have been heavily encouraged by head office to spend more of their salary allowance – set at a minimum of $35,000 and a maximum of $150,000 – on players.

By comparison, A-League clubs are obliged to spend at least $2.34 million on their squads – 67 times more than their female counterparts. Melbourne City and Canberra United are the only two W-League clubs which hit or near the maximum spend.

Two-time champions Brisbane Roar drew ire for offering their players improved deals for this season – then flirted with a 40 per cent reduction – only to honour their wage rises.

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